Tag Archives: Google Chrome Extensions

YSlow along with Google Page Speed provide a good way to find out how your website is loading and which components are slowing it down. In addition to that, it also provides several suggestions to make your website load better.

YSlow for Google Chrome works similarly to the Firefox add-on and displays users with performance ratings and grades for a website. Most of the interface will be familiar to regular users, however, there are some new features in YSlow for Chrome which includes the ability to compare YSlow results for multiple results. Some of the other feature highlights include:

User experience consistent with YSlow for Firefox.

Added the ability to detect post onload components, including for pages that prevent itself from being embedded and/or iframed. (experimental)

Support for 3 main rulesets: Default YSlow V2, Classic V1, and Small Site or Blog as well as the ability to create new ones based on these 3.

Last week Twitter released a new update to their iOS based app where they introduced a new floating bar in the app to display trending topics (read ads) to users.

This new update created an outrage in the tech sphere and even on Twitter itself. Much of the problem with this new bar lay in the fact that it overlapped tweets. This dedicated site http://dickbar.org/ explains what really happened and how this sparked an issue and the new hashtag #Dickbar.

If you aren’t an iPhone user, you might have been spared these recent changes, but if you want to know what this looked like you can try out an extension for Google Chrome which brings the #Dickbar to the web interface. Interested? Go ahead and download it from here.

I download a lot of apps and music for my iPod Touch thanks to some useful services I use to find free apps. However, searching for particular apps is a little bit hard thanks to the fact that there isn’t a proper web interface for the iTunes store.

The only way I can find apps is by using the search on the iPod Touch itself or opening up iTunes which is bulky and does not provide me with a good experience. Though there are ways to browse the iTunes store online, it is not perfect.

If you face a similar problem an extension for Google Chrome called Quick iTunes will help you solve your problems. As the extension name suggests, Quick iTunes allows you to quickly and easily search for music, videos, apps and more in the iTunes app store with an easy to use interface.

Once you install the extension you can click on the icon in the toolbar to bring up the search interface. Finding apps or music is very easy too and you can search the iTunes store and narrow down the results based on different categories.

I found this extension to be pretty useful and would suggest that you download it too if you download and install apps frequently. Download the Quick iTunes extension.

There are sometimes when you may come across websites whose content may not really be that good but who show up in the Google searches you undertake. Now, there is no easy way to get rid of those results unless you filter them out using some sort of user scripts.

However, starting today, Google is making it easier for users to start blocking websites from their search results with the help of a Google Chrome extension called Personal Blocklist. Using this Google Chrome extension users can easily block websites from appearing in search results. Once a website has been blocked, they will not appear in Google searches you make in future.

When you block or unblock a website, the extension will send information about the URL to Google. There is no way you can change this behavior.

You can also unblock the websites by clicking on the extension icon and unblocking the website. Overall this is a good feature if you want to remove some sites from search results.

Problems With Extension

If installed, the extension also sends blocked site information to Google, and we will study the resulting feedback and explore using it as a potential ranking signal for our search results.

This would definitely not be a really great idea, because people will then just start paying others to install the extension and start blocking their competitors websites. If Google starts using such data for ranking search results, it would be a disaster at best. I would prefer using the extension as a personal choice rather than overall Google rankings.

If you are interested in trying out the extension you can download it from here.

Is it broke? Does it need Fixed?

Last month, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a consumer privacy report. The commission is apparently concerned about advertising and tracking cookies, which many consider to be intrusive, but not dangerous. Tracking allows advertisers to target users with custom or localized advertisements. In hopes of fixing this issue, the report suggested that web browser makers should add a Do Not Trackmechanism.

It’s not surprising that the FTC would suggest something like this. Government bureaucrats are always offering suggestions on how free market economies should be fixed, even when they aren’t broken. However, it is surprising that only a few weeks later, Mozilla’s Firefox and Google’s Chrome developers have already announced that they’ll be offering Do Not Trackin future versions of their browsers.

Firefox Support

Alex Fowler, at Mozilla, announced support for Mozilla’s Do Not Track at his blog the other day. He said, we’re seeking ways to provide Firefox users a deeper understanding of and control over the flow of personal information online. We’re pleased to be able to share one of these efforts today â€¦.

When a web browser visits a web site, the site asks the web browser for some basic information before displaying the page. This information is transmitted in the HTTP header, and the new DNT (Do Not Track) warning will be added to this header. Once this warning is received by a web site, it’s up to them to decide whether or not to attempt to read and place tracking cookies in the browser’s cookie cache.

Chrome Support

Two days ago, the Google Public Policy blog posted an article telling us how they are handling the FTC request for a Do Not Trackfeature in Chrome. They said, Today we are building on this work, and that of others, by allowing you to permanently opt out of ad tracking from all companies that offer opt-outs through the industry self-regulation programs.

Conclusions

As usual, a Government agency is looking for problems to fix so they’ll be able to brag that they are useful sometimes. Nobody’s going to dispute their suggestions in this case, and paranoid consumers may actually benefit from this initiative.

It’s not surprising that the browser developers would jump onto the band-wagon. They’ll do anything to avoid provoking government agencies from putting a collar (or noose) around their necks. These browser changes are a cheap solution to a problem that many people didn’t consider as being serious.

Sometimes, an action like this can have unintended consequences. This time, it might be a win for everyone except the advertisers. What effect will these changes have on the web sites which depend on the advertising revenue?

By now you might have already known that Google Chrome is my favorite browser and I use it day in an day out on my Dell XPS as well as on the dedicated CR-48 netbook Google sent me.

I am also a very keen social networking user and use both Facebook and Twitter extensively. However, there are few things which could be done better with both of these services. Alas, it depends on Facebook or Twitter developers to make those changes, and many things I want in them wouldn’t be considered.

However, there are several extensions out there which can easily enhance your experience with Facebook. In this post, I will try and list out the extensions I use on Facebook to enhance my experience with it. If you are looking for a desktop tool, don’t forget to check out the most Awesome desktop app for Facebook.

Beautify Facebook

Tired of being forced on how you can view your profile without having the options to change colors or move widgets around? The Beautify Facebook extension will come in handy then.

The Beautify Facebook extension allows you to change the background for Facebook, apply transparency to content and more. It also allows you to tweak Facebook by allowing you to hide requests, Advertisements and more.

It also provides you with handy shortcuts for accessing frequently used pages. For example, you can use the Shift + h shortcut key to quickly go to the Facebook homepage from any other page, or Shift + p to go to your profile or Shift + i to to your inbox and so on. Overall, this extension is definitely worth trying out.

You will find the Options to edit the settings for Beautify Facebook extension when you visit Facebook.com.

I know that there are several ways to import your Facebook contacts to Gmail, one of which includes first importing them into Yahoo, and then exporting the address book, and then importing it into Gmail. However, that process is pretty long.

If you really want to import your Facebook contacts to Gmail, a Google Chrome extension will come in pretty handy. The Chrome extension called Facebook Friends Exporter provides users with an option to export their friends information from Facebook as a CSV file. The information you can export includes your Friend’s name, emails, phone numbers, screen names and websites. The good part about the extension though is that it also allows you to import these contacts into Gmail in a single click.

Once you have installed the extension, you will see an addition menu item called "Export friends!" in Facebook. Clicking the link will advice you to go to your friends page, however, the extension can also do that automatically for you.

On the next page, you will be shown a message about Facebook owning your friends and disclaimers which you have to accept. Once you do that, you can Get started with importing your friends and storing it locally.

The extension will then cache all your friends in Google Chrome and start importing them one by one. The process might take a while if you have a lot of friends and takes breaks in between (after it has accessed 60 of your friends profiles, otherwise Facebook will start displaying images for email address). Once the entire import process has been completed, you will be given an option to import your Facebook contacts into Gmail.

Facebook has been very strict about any script accessing contact information about your friends and have even banned users, so you might want to tread with caution here. Nevertheless, the script works and it’s hassle free, so go ahead and try it out if you really want to import your Facebook contacts to Gmail.

Once installed, the Weather Window app can be accessed by opening a new blank tab in Chrome and choosing the icon in the Apps section.

The main screen shows an open window with a simulated view of the current weather conditions. The first thing you’ll have to do is to choose your location. The new location tab is found at the top of the page. You can enter a location by zip code or city name.

Multiple locations can be added and will appear across the top of the page for easy access later. The tabs can be dragged and re-arranged as you wish.

On the right side of the weather window, you’ll see 4 icons. These represent Detailed Observations, Forecast, Weather Mapsand Cameras.

The Observations icon displays current conditions.

The Forecast icon displays a great deal of information. There are three tabs showing a summary, more forecasts and hourly forecasts.

The maps function displays some really cool looking weather maps. You can zoom in and out with your mouse scroll button. The map can also be animated to show the direction of the weather coming at you.

The camera function shows you current web cam images from weather stations close to you. In the settings, you can choose for one of these to be shown in the main weather window by default.

Earlier today, Amit wrote about the new API for Goo.gI, Google’s URL shortening service. Google launched the goo.gl service in December of 2009. Since that time, many people have adopted it over other URL shortening services such as Bit.ly and tinyURL. The two main reasons for adoption are that goo.gl filters and warns people about bad web sites, and it’s also recently been recognized as the fasted URL shortener.

The extension installs easily, just as most other Google Chrome extensions do. Once installed, you’ll see a little gray and green icon in the top right corner of the browser.

When you are at a website that you wish to create a short link for, click the goo.gl icon to create the short URL. It’s simple to use, but there are also many other features that are offered in this extension.

* short URLs are automatically copied to clipboard
* show goo.gl history and traffic
* add Keyboard shortcuts for posting to other services
* create short URL from right clicking on links
* create QR Codes

I use Twitter and Facebook a lot. In fact I spend more time than I would want to on those sites. Though I use TweetDeck for browsing Facebook and Twitter feeds, I feel a little bit of disconnect when the links I click open in a new browser window.

I guess someone out there heard me, because I came across a really good extension for Google Chrome called Layers, which provides users with a connected Social web browsing experience. It is like the media integration Twitter has, but for everything and done in a better way.

In a nutshell, Layers is a social web browser. It allows you to browse through your Facebook and Twitter feeds and allows you to preview links, videos and pictures without disconnecting you from the experience. In addition to that, it also allows you to like, comment and share content on Facebook and Retweet or reply to Twitter users from within their interface.

What Does Layers Do?

The Layers app for Google Chrome transforms the experience of surfing through the social web into an elegant, visual flow, providing users a beautiful way to get updates, view videos and share content.

Let it flow: See sites in a beautiful, flowing stream

Stop clicking. Preview, and watch videos, maps and images in a single place

Connect. Watch what your friends are doing, saying and sharing on one channel

Discover. Find stuff you’ll love and related to stuff you already like

Stay up to date. Follow your favorite sites and blogs

Keep it simple. Get the most out of your social networks using only the options you need

As you can see, Layers tries to make the social experience better by providing you with a neat platform that rocks. In addition to adding Facebook and Twitter feeds you can also add RSS channels to layers and browse them within Layers. They are also planning to add support for Google Reader so that you can read your feeds within Layers.

I have been using layers for less than a day now and totally love the experience. It is definitely one of the best Chrome Apps I have seen and makes my social experience complete.